Cobra Spark Arrester on 2040-parts.com

2012 Ford Focus ST gets 297bhp

Those clever chaps at SuperChips have given the 2012 Ford Focus ST a bit of an ECU tweak to deliver 297bhp and an extra 85lb/ft of torque. When we reported last week that WTC outfit Arena had in roped Ford’s tuner of choice, Mountune, to give the new Ford Focus a makeover, we were a tad disappointed to discover that they were tweaking the rather journeyman Focus Zetec S. That meant the Zetec S got 200bhp – a handy jump – but we bemoaned the fact that they hadn’t fiddled with the Focus ST to give us a car to fill the void left by the absence of a Focus RS in the current iteration of the Focus.

Japan order backlog puts U.S. allocation of Toyota Prius C at risk

Soaring demand for the new Toyota Prius C in Japan may create a U.S. allocation dilemma. The pint-sized hybrid is scheduled to arrive in U.S.

2015 VW Polo GTI gets new 1.8 litre TSI with 189bhp

The VW Polo GTI gets a facelift and new engine for 2015 The 2015 Volkswagen Polo GTI is being updated for 2015 – and heading for a debut at the Paris Motor Show – with VW bucking the trend for ever smaller engines by dropping the current 1.4 litre turbocharged and supercharged lump in favour of a new 1.8 litre TSI with 189bhp and 236lb/ft of torque. The extra power lets the new Polo GTI get to 62mph in 6.7 seconds and on to a top speed of 147mph and, unlike the current GTI, you’ll also be able to do that with a six-speed manual ‘box as well as the optional 7-speed DSG. Aside from the new engine, you’ll need to look quite hard to see the changes, but the 2015 Polo GTI does get updated headlights, a new grill (complete with red stripe), more aggressive bumpers with the interior keeping its tartan seats and getting the same updates as those on the rest of the Polo range.